Local veteran’s bout with PTSD gets national attention

Published: Thursday, October 10, 2013 at 06:39 PM.

Events described most commonly as causes of PTSD in veterans were having a friend wounded or killed, witnessing non-combatant casualties, the smell of battlefields and death and being close to blasts.

Ed Faulkner was twice wounded in service. His first Purple Heart came after he was shot in the arm as a cavalry scout in Iraq in 2007. He suffered some nerve damage but recovered and chose to finish his 15-month deployment “to get over his fear,” his father said.

He was deployed to Afghanistan in May 2009, stationed at the remote mountain outpost that was already known to be unsafe. There was talk of closing it for months.

Intelligence often indicated imminent attacks by Taliban rebels, usually resulting in a few shots fired, Edward Faulkner said. A similar report came in early October 2009 as the outpost was preparing to close.

On Oct. 3, at 5:30 a.m., 300 Taliban surrounded COP Keating. The 53 U.S. soldiers there were caught by surprise. The Army’s official narrative of the battle describes the chaos.

Ed Faulkner and two other soldiers were injured by shrapnel inside a Humvee hit by eight successive rocket-propelled grenades. Faulkner was the only man inside who survived an escape from the vehicle under heavy fire.

He underwent numerous surgeries in recovery. As early as April 2010, he told his parents that something was wrong and that he needed psychological help. The Army’s response seemed callous to the Faulkners.

ELON — Sharon and Edward Faulkner weren’t sure how to react to the news in that August phone call.

On the other end was Army Staff Sgt. Ty Carter — a comrade of their deceased son, Army Spec. Edward “Ed” Faulkner Jr. — inviting them to the Aug. 26 ceremony during which he would receive the Medal of Honor. It involved attending ceremonies at the White House and Pentagon.

They hesitated in their answer, unsure they wanted to stir up the emotions reliving the battle that physically and psychologically scarred their son.

Carter and Ed Faulkner fought in a bloody battle Oct. 3, 2009, at Combat Outpost Keating in remote eastern Afghanistan. Eight of 53 soldiers there were killed when more than 300 Taliban soldiers stormed the outpost. Faulkner and Carter were among 29 wounded holding the camp, waiting for U.S. reinforcements to arrive.

Ed Faulkner returned to Elon in spring 2010 with severe post-traumatic stress disorder, haunted by that day. He eventually suffered a mental breakdown before dying of an accidental overdose Sept. 16, 2010.

On the phone, Carter assured them it was important for them to be there and hinted that something special was in the works. So they agreed and made plans for Washington, D.C.

They were surprised Aug. 26 when President Barack Obama named and recognized Ed Faulkner in his speech, calling attention to PTSD and the need for better treatment for returning soldiers. Then, during a Pentagon event, their son was recognized as the ninth victim of the COP Keating battle. The Faulkners were designated a Gold Star Family, recognition given to families of fallen soldiers.

“Given Ed’s demise, it doesn’t get any better than that,” Edward Faulkner said Wednesday.

In addition, Carter has pledged to use his platform as a Medal of Honor recipient to teach about PTSD. Carter also suffers from the condition, which he’s says is a normal reaction to the horrors of war —not a disorder. The Faulkners believe their son’s story will be part of his message.

Ed Faulkner’s life is also part of “The Outpost,” an account and analysis of the events leading up to the COP Keating battle and its aftermath. The book, by journalist Jake Tapper, was released in November.

“Ed will live on now,” Sharon Faulkner said.

AS MANY AS 20 percent of soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan describe suffering from PTSD.

A 2008 RAND Corp. study on PTSD interviewed 2,000 of the then-1.6 million soldiers previously deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan. A third of them reported being affected by PTSD, depression or probable traumatic brain injury. Some said they suffered from a combination of all three.

Events described most commonly as causes of PTSD in veterans were having a friend wounded or killed, witnessing non-combatant casualties, the smell of battlefields and death and being close to blasts.

Ed Faulkner was twice wounded in service. His first Purple Heart came after he was shot in the arm as a cavalry scout in Iraq in 2007. He suffered some nerve damage but recovered and chose to finish his 15-month deployment “to get over his fear,” his father said.

He was deployed to Afghanistan in May 2009, stationed at the remote mountain outpost that was already known to be unsafe. There was talk of closing it for months.

Intelligence often indicated imminent attacks by Taliban rebels, usually resulting in a few shots fired, Edward Faulkner said. A similar report came in early October 2009 as the outpost was preparing to close.

On Oct. 3, at 5:30 a.m., 300 Taliban surrounded COP Keating. The 53 U.S. soldiers there were caught by surprise. The Army’s official narrative of the battle describes the chaos.

Ed Faulkner and two other soldiers were injured by shrapnel inside a Humvee hit by eight successive rocket-propelled grenades. Faulkner was the only man inside who survived an escape from the vehicle under heavy fire.

He underwent numerous surgeries in recovery. As early as April 2010, he told his parents that something was wrong and that he needed psychological help. The Army’s response seemed callous to the Faulkners.

Their son was ridiculed for his condition before being discharged that spring. He received treatment at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Durham for PTSD.

Once home, he retreated to his room. He repeatedly watched footage of the COP Keating battle that the Taliban uploaded to the Internet. He complained of hearing blasts and children screaming and crying outside. A Greensboro Grasshoppers baseball game turned nightmarish when the game-ending fireworks launched.

One night Sharon Faulkner found her son huddled in the bushes outside, warning of enemy fire. He had no recollection of the events the next day.

In July 2010, Burlington police intervened during a severe bout of hallucinations and a nervous breakdown. He was hospitalized at Alamance Regional Medical Center, where doctors recommended 30 days of intense treatment at a mental hospital when he was released.

Ed Faulkner had to be convinced to seek treatment at the VA. The VA hospital, overwhelmed with patients, kept him for two days before sending him home with medications, Edward Faulkner said.

On Sept. 16, 2010, Ed Faulkner took a tablet of a friend’s methadone and died. The Faulkners believe he was self-medicating to deal with his PTSD.

A medical examiner ruled his death accidental, with the primary cause of death as an overdose and PTSD listed as a major cause.

“God saved him twice. He answered my prayers to bring him home safe,” Sharon Faulkner said. “Three days before he died, he re-dedicated his life to the lord.”

A message on his headstone reads, “You are safe. You are home. You can rest.”

THE FAULKNERS HAVE struggled to grasp what their son went through while embracing blessings that have come since his death.

“We can just see God’s hand moving through,” Sharon Faulkner said.

A member of the Patriot Guard Riders, a motorcycle club dedicated to veterans’ causes, donated a golden retriever therapy dog to a veteran in Charlotte with severe PTSD. He asked the Faulkners if he could name it “Ed.”

They were touched. It seemed appropriate because their son always wanted a large dog.

That veteran initially couldn’t care for himself but is now living on his own and driving. He calls the Faulkners occasionally, telling them how much he loves “Ed.”

They are also leaders of a Grief Share program at the Lamb’s Chapel in Haw River. The program helped them heal by offering a welcoming place to talk about their son and they want to help others.

“I just love that Ed’s death has brought so many blessings,” Edward Faulkner said.

Now they are encouraged that the military is taking larger steps to diagnose and treat PTSD — evidenced by Carter’s and the president’s statements this summer and public initiatives for veterans and their families.

They hope their son’s legacy will prevent tragedies in other families.

“We didn’t know anything about what Carter and Obama planned to say,” Sharon Faulkner said. “To be in Washington, D.C., and hear so much about how he was loved and experience the kindness of others … to hear that he was a hero. He is our hero.”